The Liverpool Hope Story

Liverpool Hope University pursues a path of excellence in scholarship and collegial life without reservation or hesitation. The University’s distinctive philosophy is to ‘educate in the round’ – mind, body and spirit – in the quest for Truth, Beauty and Goodness.

Liverpool Hope now

We are proud of our rich heritage but we continue to look to the future as we invest in the University. In recent years we have celebrated the opening of the EDEN (Education and Enterprise) building, and the opening of our Health and Sports Science avenue at Hope Park. The Creative Campus goes from strength to strength, with expansion of this campus planned for summer 2018.

All of these changes serve to enhance the idea of collegium and community at Liverpool Hope – something that has been at the heart of the University since its beginnings back in 1844.

Our history

Almost 170 years ago, our first founding colleges The Church of England’s Warrington Training College (1844) and the Sisters of Notre Dame’s Our Lady’s Training College (1856) were established to provide teacher education for women. A century later, Christ’s College was built opposite S. Katharine’s, where Hope Park is today, admitting its first students in 1964.

By 1980, the colleges had joined to form an ecumenical federation – the Liverpool Institute of Higher Education (LIHE). The late Archbishop Derek Worlock and Bishop David Sheppard wrote of this as being "a sign of hope" (Better Together).

LIHE later became a single, unified College and was given the new name of Liverpool Hope to represent the mission of the college. Liverpool Hope University was born in July 2005, when the Privy Council bestowed the right to use the University title. Research Degree Awarding Powers were granted by the Privy Council in 2009.